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Thursday, November 8, 2007 — Perhaps the most optimistic thing we can say about this sordid string of items, is that it tends to put today’s horrors in perspective. 1994—Under the leadership of serial philanderer Newt Gingrich, the Republican Party gains control of Congress. 1983—Moscow puts its nuclear forces on high alert and sends flash telegrams to its embassies warning that a nuclear strike on the U.S.S.R. may come at any time. 1974—Richard Bingham, 7th Earl of Lucan, disappears without a trace, leaving a dead nanny behind. 1966—Bonzo the Chimp’s former co-star Ronald Reagan is elected Governor of Calif. 1966—The first black U.S. Senator in …

Read morePhilandery, Beer, and Bribes

Wednesday, November 7, 2007 — Here we offer further proof — as if any were needed — of Dwight D. Eisenhower’s telling observation, “[t]hings are more like they are now than they ever were before.” 2002—“War is not my first choice,” lies George W. Bush, “it’s my last choice.” 2000—The American people vote for a president. They get George W. Bush, instead. 1972—Richard Nixon kicks George McGovern’s ass. 1962—Richard Nixon, tells the press they won’t have him to kick around any more. (He lies.) 1940—The crew of the San Demetrio reboard their blazing tanker and put out the fire. Nine days later they reach Ireland. …

Read moreWar, Lies, and Mayhem

Tuesday, November 6, 2007 — We’ve now established a category for these Page Sixteen posts, and, in the process, re-written their headlines. We do hope that isn’t a violation of netiquette. 1984—It’s mourning in America as Ronald Reagan defeats Walter Mondale. 1977—A dam owned and modified by the Toccoa Falls Bible Institute in Georgia fails, and kills 39 people. 1975—The Sex Pistols perform in public for the first time. 1971—The Atomic Energy Commission explodes a 5-megaton H-bomb—the largest ever exploded in the U.S.—one mile below Amchitka Island in Alaska, about 87 miles from a Soviet naval base in Siberia. 1963—Laura Welch—later Bush—runs a stop sign …

Read moreRevolting, Exploding, and Mourning

Monday, November 5, 2007—We skipped posting for a couple of days because we feared our slacker credentials might otherwise tarnish. 2004—A Franklin Co. (OH) official reports that Pres. Bush’s 3,893 vote total in one district is erroneous—only 638 ballots were cast. 1994—File under “Non-News:” Ronald Reagan announces he has Alzheimer’s. 1949—Deranged WW II vet Howard Unruh shoots and kills 12 in Camden, NJ. 1940—The crew of the flaming tanker San Demetrio, set ablaze by shells from the Admiral Scheer, abandons ship. 1930—Told over the phone by a Swedish newspaper reporter that he’s won the Nobel Prize, Sinclair Lewis, thinking it’s a hoax, imitates the man’s …

Read moreSocialist Jailbird Gets Birthday Votes

Friday, November 2, 2007 — You see what we have to live with around here: weird alien serpent creatures, zombies, &c., &c. Is it any wonder we like to revisit the past, and see what happened on this day in history? 2004—Warren Co. (OH) officials count votes behind locked doors because of an alleged “terrorist threat.” 2002—“We know he [Saddam Hussein] has chemical weapons,” says George W. Bush. 1983—Soviet intelligence services, already convinced that the U.S. is planning a pre-emptive nuclear strike under cover of a training exercise, detect NATO’s Able Archer 83—just such an exercise—and conclude that a nuclear strike is imminent. 1972—The Seafarer’s …

Read moreA Close Call and a Coup

Thursday, November 1, 2007 —Portsmouth’s Halloween Parade just keeps getting better. Here, Parade Grand Marshal Donald Trumpet, accompanied by his gold-plated Trophy Wife, is preceded by two of his Yes Men. We’d say more but the paper is due at the printer’s. Here are a few notable items from November 1’s gone by: 2004—Voting machines are delivered to polling places in Franklin Co., OH. More go to higher-income areas than lower-income areas. 2002—“[T]hat’s what you expect here in New Hampshire,” says George W. Bush at Pease Tradeport, “somebody who tells you what’s on your mind.” 1966—Lyndon Johnson, lying, tells U.S. troops in Korea that his …

Read moreLyndon Lies, But Liberty Lives